Читать книгу American Quaker Romances. Building the Myth of the White Christian Nation онлайн

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All in all, the analysis of these thirty-nine romances with Quaker protagonists will underscore the relevance of the four elements above given as being responsible for the novels’ success; namely, the novels’ self-aggrandizing deployment of U.S. history; their use of feminist principles in the configuration of gender roles; their appropriation of Quakerism, mostly of its outward and more exotic markers and of a few theological aspects; and their portrayal of race relations in such a way that White supremacy appears unchallenged. Indeed, as the analysis will demonstrate, the Quaker romances under study glorify America’s history either by minimizing its most problematic aspects or by exoticizing them, which accommodates the nationalistic feelings of their readers. The romances show a relative degree of flexibility when it comes to gender roles. This permits them to build the image of America as a country where women’s citizenship rights are respected, and democratic principles realized, and in this way, they manage to engage their female readership. Besides, the romances capitalize on those aspects of Quakerism that make this sect particularly appealing, especially its connection with the abolitionist cause and female suffrage. As they do so, they inscribe God’s leading role in the foundation of the nation, thus catering to the religious needs of their readership. Finally, the romances sanction unequal race relations where Whites are systematically the providers of aid and characters of color the recipients of Whites’ charitable efforts. This gives support to the status quo while, it would seem, simultaneously exonerating the White humanitarian elite from any accusations of racism. Ultimately, the analysis will prove that the appeal of the Quaker romances in the corpus resides in their capacity to build a national consciousness and a cultural identity for the U.S. in the twenty-first century; one which is based on the manipulation of history, gender, religion, and race for the greater good of White Christian nationalism.